Hearing assistance devices have a variety of design and packaging issues. Components are increasingly small in size and require One type of hearing assistance device is a hearing aid. Hearing aids include in-the-ear (ITE), in-the-canal (ITC), completely-in-the-canal (CIC) and behind-the-ear (BTE) designs. Each of these types of hearing aid has its benefits and technical challenges. Generally speaking, CIC designs are placed entirely in the canal and do not rely on manually accessible controls for operation, but are almost impossible to see from the perspective of another casual observer. On the other hand, BTE designs are much more visible and have controls which are readily manually accessible by the user, since the BTE rests on the back side of the ear. In BTE designs conventional switches may be employed, however such switches can fail due to wear and tear or can get dirty, thereby decreasing product benefit and lifetime.
Other tradeoffs in packaging and performance exist. For example, a number of electrical connections are made in such devices, and the room with which a manufacturer has to work with is more limited as device sizes decrease. Device components are typically soldered together, but such connections are prone to failure over time and with extended use of the hearing assistance devices.